A new standard for Wi-Fi published recently by the IEEE Standards Association could put an end to broadband dead spots in rural areas and countries without mature Internet infrastructure.

802.22 Wi-Fi, which has a range of over 100 kilometres and utilises the unused VHF and UHF frequencies between TV channels, will be used for Wireless Regional Area Networks (WRAN) in places where users are too far from a traditional exchange using copper wire, or where expensive iptic fibre installations aren’t an option because of cost.